![]() Items of material culture recovered from unit 1 include iron fragments, three spindle whorls, a hammerstone, a whetstone, ceramic vessel sherds and a miniature ceramic vessel. All the human remains were fragmentary the secondary burials were comprised of teeth and pieces of long bone. A second and third burial were discovered in association with worn limestone boulders. Human remains were discovered resting atop four limestone boulders below a large sandstone disc. Three mortuary contexts were uncovered in unit 1. This explanation is supported by the discovery of two hammerstones in the units, one adjacent to a stone jar. In the first 200mm of this unit a substantial number of sandstone chips (n = >100) were discovered, indicating the possible retouching of the large stone jars. Unit 1Īn excavation unit measuring 3 × 3m, with small extensions, was established within group 2 at site 1, based on the presence of numerous varied surface features, including large jars carved from sandstone and conglomerate, a sandstone disc and quartz-veined sandstone boulders. The morphology of each jar and the type of stone used has been recorded and every object photographed. An extensive inventory of jars, boulders and discs was undertaken, and the location of each geo-referenced. Three excavation units were established at site 1 (Figure 2), located around 5km from the city of Phonsavan, Xieng Khouang Province. ![]() These aims will be achieved through the application of a range of archaeological and analytical techniques. The project seeks to understand the function of the megalithic jars, to examine the geographic extent of the associated culture and to assess the role of the sites in the context of burgeoning inter-regional exchange networks of the period. The jar sites located in Xieng Khouang Province, Laos, are the focus of an Australian Research Council project entitled ‘Unravelling the Mystery of the Plain of Jars’, led by Dougald O’Reilly (Australian National University), Louise Shewan (Monash University) and Thonglith Luangkhoth (Ministry of Information, Culture and Tourism). Van Den Bergh undertook an extensive survey in 2007, expanding the number of known sites to 85 (Van Den Bergh pers. Since Colani’s creditable efforts, only limited research has been undertaken on these sites (Nitta 1996 Sayavongkhamdy & Bellwood 2000 Genovese 2012). 600 BC–AD 500) on the basis of associated material culture. Although the stone jars remain undated, it is probable that they were created during the Iron Age ( c. Most jars are carved from sandstone but some are fashioned from conglomerate, granite or breccia. Some of the larger sites have more than 300 stone jars. The sites, which are most commonly found on the summits of hills or on flat plains, comprise large stone jars, averaging 1–1.5m (with examples up to 3m) in height and 2m in diameter, clustered in groups across the landscape. These sites were first brought to the attention of western scholars by Madeleine Colani (1935) who documented dozens of jar sites and conducted excavations in several locations. ![]() The megalithic stone jar sites of Laos remain one of Southeast Asia’s enduring archaeological mysteries (Figure 1). Location of site 1, Xieng Khouang Province, Laos.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |